Salad spinners are well-known devices for removing excess water from washable goods such as vegetables. Many operate using the same principle employed in clothes washers . The device typically comprises a cylindrical container with holes through the walls into which is placed the washable material . After rinsing, excess water or other cleaning fluid is removed by spinning the container, subjecting the contents to centrifugal forces. This forces the water to the periphery of the container where it slips through the holes.
Since these devices spin at a relatively high angular velocity, the structure of the container is usually constructed of a strong, rigid material such as metal or plastic so that it will maintain its circular shape while spinning and not wobble. This rigid, non-collapsible container structure, even if removable from the spinning mechanism, is quite bulky. When used for storage, it takes up a considerable amount of the limited room available in a refrigerator or in its vegetable drawer.
The storage of vegetables in an air-tight environment is also desirable to maintain their freshness. Typical salad spinners are not air-tight and therefore unsuitable for storing vegetables long-term. An alternative is removing the salad from the spinner and storing the salad in the refrigerator in a plastic bag. This can be inconvenient. In general, typical salad spinners do not provide a practical refrigerated vegetable storage receptacle.
Salad spinners are relatively expensive. They generally require additional mechanisms and/or attachments for implementing the spinning feature. This necessarily adds to the intricacy and therefore, expense of the overall product. Because of their relative expense, current salad spinners are not economically disposable. Disposability of a storage container for sanitary and convenience reasons is still an asset with today's consumers who are still tenaciously grasping onto the "throw-away" mentality.
It would be desirable therefore, to have a device which drains excess water from washable goods and which stores them in a disposable collapsible airtight container.